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Criminal law

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Criminal Procedure

Dalhousie Law Journal

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Full-Text Articles in Law

The Criminal Defence Lawyer's Role, David Layton Oct 2004

The Criminal Defence Lawyer's Role, David Layton

Dalhousie Law Journal

Defence lawyers often fight to prevent the conviction of people who have committed serious crimes. How can this role be justified? In providing his answer the author generally accepts the traditional view of criminal lawyering according to which defence counsel "does good" by ensuring that the state does not obtain a conviction in the absence of proof beyond a reasonable doubt based on admissible and reliable evidence Ethical advocacy in the criminal context is thus heavily influenced by a conception of justice that includes not only the search for truth but also due process rights for accused persons. The author …


Guilty Plea Revocation, Constitutional Waiver, And The Charter: "A Guilty Plea Is Not A Trap", John Dr Craig Apr 1997

Guilty Plea Revocation, Constitutional Waiver, And The Charter: "A Guilty Plea Is Not A Trap", John Dr Craig

Dalhousie Law Journal

The entry of a guilty plea has significant constitutional ramifications. It relieves the Crown of its obligation to prove the elements of an offence beyond a reasonable doubt and constitutes a waiver by the accused of various rights including the right to put the Crown's case to the test of a trial, the right to confront Crown witnesses through cross-examination and the right to remain silent in relation to the determination of legal guilt. In light of these constitutional dimensions, the article considers an issue which has received little academic attention: the revocation of a guiltyplea. The authorassesses the existing …


Scientific Statistical And Methodology And The Doctrine Of "Reasonable Doubt" In Criminal Law; (With Specific Reference To The Breath Analysis For Blood Alcohol) Empirical Fact Or Legal Ficton?, A. Burton Bass, H. Davidson Gesser, K. Stephan Mount May 1979

Scientific Statistical And Methodology And The Doctrine Of "Reasonable Doubt" In Criminal Law; (With Specific Reference To The Breath Analysis For Blood Alcohol) Empirical Fact Or Legal Ficton?, A. Burton Bass, H. Davidson Gesser, K. Stephan Mount

Dalhousie Law Journal

Lawyers pride themselves on being men of reason. After all, they postulate, it is the "reasonable man" who is enshrined at the apex of the Anglo-American legal system in the adjudication of civil disputes; it is the legally trained mind that proves so finely honed a tool in the area of problem solving in private practice; the rational decisional process is the hallmark of the judicial mind. Where the life or liberty of an individual is in contention this expert "sense" of reason is brought one step further - the criminal law, with few exceptions, will not countenance a mere …